The much-anticipated and long-awaited dedication of Mary, Mother of the Good Shepherd Chapel at the Center for Pastoral Leadership in Wickliffe took place during a liturgy celebrated by Bishop Edward Malesic on Aug. 17.
Concelebrants included Auxiliary Bishop Michael Woost, Youngstown Bishop David Bonnar, Bishop Martin Amos, retired bishop of Davenport, Iowa, Father Andy Turner, president/rector of Borromeo and Saint Mary seminaries, as well as diocesan vicars, seminary faculty and staff and former rectors.
(See photo gallery above.)
Father Turner welcomed guests to the celebration and offered his appreciation to the bishops, seminaries’ boards of trustees, donors, benefactors and others for their support and the important role they played during the extensive, yearslong project. He recognized “the grace and patience of these communities as we waited a long time for this day.”
Rick Schultz, chairperson of the multi-year, diocesanwide Heart of a Shepherd campaign, also was acknowledged. The campaign, overseen by the Catholic Community Foundation, provided funding for a major renovation of the seminaries including the residences and technology, the chapel, parish needs, assistance with student loans for newly ordained priests and the needs of retired priests.
The new chapel is a place “where our encounters with God through the mysteries of our faith will happen for many, many years to come,” Father Turner said.
Bishop Malesic received a detailed summary of the project from representatives of Henninger’s, the company that helped oversee the transformation of the former Resurrection Chapel, the name it received during a 1969 renovation.
Father Chris Trenta, liturgy director at the CPL, got emotional as he explained some of the features of the new chapel. “The real goal of work such as this is to inspire the Christian soul,” he said.
The sanctuary floor and steps are marble. A new wood reredos (the decorative screen behind the altar) was added. The organ was refurbished as a hybrid pipe-digital instrument. A new Italian marble altar, ambo and altar of repose were commissioned and installed. New chairs were purchased, the pews were refinished and kneelers were replaced. Wooden statues were repaired, cleaned, resealed and reinstalled. New Stations of the Cross were gifted by the rector. Also, the ceilings were replaced, lighting was upgraded and the entire chapel was repainted.
In addition, cameras and microphones were installed for livestreaming liturgies, including the dedication Mass.
Special features include mapping out the constellation on the ceiling to show the stars as they appeared the morning of April 23, 1847, when the Diocese of Cleveland was erected from the Diocese of Cincinnati. Behind the crucifix, the stars are based on a view looking east from Jerusalem the morning of the Annunciation in the year of Jesus’ birth.
The tabernacle had been in storage for more than 50 years before being refurbished and installed in the new space.
Father Trenta said input and guidance from Bishop Malesic, the seminary community and others help shape the project. “We sought to preserve the sense of continuity with those generations of faith who worshiped in this space,” he said. “Whatever we did was to make it look as if it was always meant to be here.”
Bishop Malesic noted it had been three years since Mass was last celebrated in the chapel.
“Just as the Church is constantly reforming itself, but never changing its nature nor its message, so it is the same with this chapel. Changed, but with the same purpose,” he said. Although the chapel has a new name, the bishop said it remains a place of God’s presence.
“The beauty of this chapel is meant to inspire us to have souls that are equally beautiful, if not more so, and just a dedicated to God,” he added.
The chapel is at the heart of the seminary, Bishop Malesic pointed out, calling it “the beating heart of Borromeo and Saint Mary seminaries and the Center for Pastoral Leadership and all who will visit here to find a connection with the divine.” It is on the second floor of the CPL, which makes it an upper room, he said, connecting it to the Upper Room in Jerusalem, site of the Last Supper.
As striking as Mary, Mother of the Good Shepherd Chapel is, the bishop reminded the faithful that Jesus’ presence cannot be limited to that space or any chapel or church. He encouraged them to “be witnesses to his presence in the world by how we live, by what we say, by what we believe, by our repentance, by our generosity and by inviting others to come and see the glory of the Lord.”
View an archived livestream of the dedication Mass here. Learn more about Borromeo Seminary here and Saint Mary Seminary and Graduate School of Theology here. Read more about the chapel project in the July/August issue of Northeast Ohio Catholic magazine.